The Passion of Collecting Academic Nudes

Join me as we explore my collection of Academic Nudes from the 18th, 19th, and Early 20th Centuries and serendipitous finds in the Museum, Art Auction, and Gallery world......examples from the Golden Age of the European Academie

About Me

After my early retirement I went back to school to train in Fine Arts - Studio Painting at the University level. During my required life drawing classes, I became enamoured with the beauty of the nude, both male and female. Online I bought my first 19th Century work of the Academic Nude. I was hooked. It is such a shame that more Museums do not collect and display them but I guess they are considered minor works by such august bodies. I have amassed a nice collection of drawings, paintings, watercolors, and graphic works that adorn every wall in my home. Ocassionally I sell on eBay, passing along the joy of ownership to other collectors. That joy of collecting is the inspiration for my blog. I have tried not to limit myself to strictly 19th century works but instead include works from what I consider to be the Golden Age of the Art Academy, mid-18th to early 20th centuries. By the advent of modernism and the 1920's, the party was literally over. The academy system with its salons had collapsed and the strict academic teaching methods all but forgotten.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Various 18th and Early 19th Century Italian Schools: Male Nudes

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Cambi Casa d'Aste, Genoa, Italy has listed a nice series of academic male nudes from various 18th and early 19th century Italian Schools in their current catalog. Most are unsigned. As for myself, I would be hesitant to bid on items in Italian auction houses for the simple reason that Italian Customs makes the entire exercise a crap load of work and I would prefer to keep the hair I still have left on my head. I had an overnight shipment from Italy held up for weeks, all with the necessary export forms and approvals, by Italian customs for reasons known only to God. You can't blame them for watching their cultural heritage like hawks because so much of it has been stolen, however, beware, Italian bureaucrats move like garden slugs, require everything in triplicate, and stamped with every stamp known to mankind. It's almost that bad believe me, but just be patient and the Italian system will eventually move like a clogged drain.